Performance Evaluation of the BD SARS-CoV-2 Reagents for the BD MAX System.

Nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) for SARS-CoV-2 is the standard approach for confirming COVID-19 cases. This study compared results between two emergency use authorization (EUA) NAATs, with two additional EUA NAATs utilized for discrepant testing. The limits of detection (LOD) for the BD SARS-CoV-2 reagents for the BD MAX system (MAX SARS-CoV-2 assay), the bioMérieux BioFire respiratory panel 2.

Hind limb motoneurons activity during fictive locomotion or scratching induced by pinna stimulation, serotonin, or glutamic acid in brain cortex-ablated cats.

In brain cortex-ablated cats (BCAC), hind limb motoneurons activity patterns were studied during fictive locomotion (FL) or fictive scratching (FS) induced by pinna stimulation. In order to study motoneurons excitability: heteronymous monosynaptic reflex (HeMR), intracellular recording, and individual Ia afferent fiber antidromic activity (AA) were analyzed. The intraspinal cord microinjections of serotonin or glutamic acid effects were made to study their influence in FL or FS During FS, HeMR amplitude in extensor and bifunctional motoneurons increased prior to or during the respective electroneurogram (ENG).

Locomotion in intact and in brain cortex-ablated cats.

The current decerebration procedures discard the role of the thalamus in the motor control and decortication only rules out the brain cortex part, leaving a gap between the brain cortex and the subthalamic motor regions. In here we define a new preparation denominated Brain Cortex-Ablated Cat (BCAC), in which the frontal and parietal brain cortices as well as the central white matter beneath them were removed, this decerebration process may be considered as suprathalamic, since the thalamus remained intact. To characterize this preparation cat hindlimb electromyograms (EMG), kinematics and cutaneous reflexes (CR) produced by electrical stimulation of sural (SU) or saphenous (SAPH) nerves were analyzed during locomotion in intact and in BCAC.

The neuropeptide Gonadotropin-releasing hormone modifies the spontaneous muscular contraction in the earthworm: Eisenia foetida.

We investigated whether the Gonadotropin-releasing hormone affects the spontaneous muscular contraction in the earthworm Eisenia foetida. In addition, we investigated the presence of Gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor in ventral nerve cord by immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone induced a significant increase on both amplitude and muscular tone and decrease in the frequency of spontaneous muscular contraction.